After the war
by Rebekah Hermione Chase
Summary: this is a classic 8th year Dramione. Probably some very random pairings. This is only my second fanfictions so be nice. Hope you like it. Rated M just in case, I don't really know where this is going, will be as much a surprise to me as it will be to you.
1. Chapter 1

A warm August breeze reached an open window in a small country house. It gently moved aside the pale blue curtains, allowing the warm rays of light to enter the cozy room inside. Bookshelves adorned the walls, engulfing the room in the comforting smell of old books and warm summer air. Soon a new smell overpowered those, seeping in through the door that led downstairs- the smell of warm, freshly baked bread and steaming hot coffee.

The rays of sun that were still lightly dancing across the room, finally reached the bed, illuminating the girl within. As she turned around, slowly opening her eyes, a lazy smile appeared on her lips. These familiar smells always managed to comfort her, and God knows she needed some comfort, especially today. This was finally the day. A light frown crossed the girls face, but she quickly shook the uncomfortable feeling away. Her anxiety will not ruin her last day at her grandmother's house. With a new found sense of purpose to enjoy today as much as humanly possible, she slipped out of bed, still half asleep, and found her way downstairs.

As she opened the door into the well lit kitchen, which was also the biggest room in the house, she was greeted by the marvellous aroma of her grandmothers cooking. It seemed, that the old woman was determined to fatten her granddaughter up this summer, as the poor girl looked like a ghost ready to be blown away by a sudden gust of wind, after a long and tiring year at her far away boarding school. What she didn't know, of course, was the fact that it was more the stress and hardship of the wizarding war that made Hermione so thin and fragile. But, thanks to a healthy summer at home, there was none of that left. She was once again looking healthy and well rested. It is a wonder what a good three meals a day, and sound sleep can do to a teenage girl. Hermione was now, quite easily one of the prettiest girls at Hogwarts, and all the young muggle guys in her village have definitely realised that by now, as she had no shortage of suitors this summer. Hermione herself, however, was not very aware of any of that, as she was never too fussed about appearances before. But it is undeniable that all of that male attention has definitely done her good, as even without realising it, she was now more confident in herself. It goes without saying that, over this last summer she has developed into a very beautiful girl.

So, as you can imagine, despite her numerous hardships throughout the year, Hermione has had a very enjoyable summer, tucked away in a little muggle village by the sea, catching up with all her childhood friends and fattening up on her grandmothers roast dinners and pancakes. But the end of summer was swiftly approaching, and Hermione realised that she couldn't hide away anymore. Her Hogwarts letter was due to arrive this morning, and with it came the inevitable visit to the Diagon Alley, where she would undoubtedly be reminded time and time again about the horrible events of last year. I am not saying, however that Hermione was entirely unoptimistic about going back to school. Not at all. In fact, she was very much looking forward to being a year 8 student. More than that, she was very happy to be seeing all her friends again. They have all decided to spend this summer apart and with their family's so as to forget everything as quickly as possible, and move in with their lives.

Hermione was determined to turn her life around this year. Now that Voldemort was finally defeated, and she has finally brought her parents back, after a tearful reunion and quite a bit scolding, her mother made her promise to have as much fun as possible this year. Hermione was supposed to get her head out of the books, and enjoy being a normal teenager. And in her mother's opinion that included a lot of drinking and partying. Oh, and dating of course. That particular one Hermione was slightly nervous about. Now, at this point I feel like I own my readers an explanation, or rather a brief summary of what has happened since the battle of Hogwarts.

Well... a few day were spent in an almost automatic state. Every one who was fit enough to stand stayed behind at Hogwarts to help clean up and bury the dead. In those days many have gone mad from the pain of losing their loved ones. One family was affected in particular- the Weasleys. After Fred's death, George seemed to have completely shut down. He did not eat or speak, or do anything really. He just sat by his brothers grave, staring at his headstone. Sometimes he would talk to him, sometimes he would cry or get andy. But mostly he just sat there. Finally, after a week or so, after people were starting to leave the grounds, and all the repairing was more or less complete, Molly couldn't stand seeing her son like that anymore, so she took him to St. Mungo's. This meant that someone needed to take care of the shop, and so Ron took it upon himself to reopen The Weasley's Wizarding Wheeses. He decided to live in Fred and George's old apartment, above the shop. Everyone understood that it was his own way of dealing with things. He was finally taking responsibility for something, and it kept him going.

Meanwhile Harry stayed at the Burrow, as he had nowhere else to go. He spent a lot of time with Ginny, and they gradually got back together. He has also decided to pay a visit to the Dursleys' at some point. Just purely for sentimental reasons. They definitely weren't the best guardians, but they were a massive part of his childhood none the less, and he felt like he owned it to them to check up on them and also tell them that the war was finally over and they were safe. Hermione however, hasn't spoken to Harry since the beginning of summer, so she had no idea how that went. She would have to ask him about that later.

Molly was as busy as ever, taking care of everyone, and especially of young Teddy Lupin, who she has adopted shortly after the Battle of Hogwarts. And everyone understood that that was her own way of dealing with everything, and so they let her take care of them.

And Hermione, well she needed to find her parents, so she left for Australia. Keeping her mind occupied with searching for her parents, and then figuring out how to reverse her spell was her particular way of dealing with the aftermaths of the war and so they let her go. So all of this meant that she hasn't seen a certain redhead for 3 whole months, which meant that they didn't have a chance to talk about their kiss in the chamber of secrets, or what it might have possibly meant. And so this brings me right back to Hermione's nervousness of coming back to school, and especially starting to date. Truth be told she wasn't sure how she felt about Ron, and despite having the whole summer to figure it out, she was as close to making a decision as she was 3 months ago. And that wasn't even the worst bit! For all she knew, he has already moved on, and was dating someone else. God knows there wasn't a shortage of witches throwing themselves at him, especially now that he was an internationally known war hero. And that, in turn brings me to another reason for Hermione's anxiety. She was now a pronounced war hero. Part of the world famous Golden Trio, with her face in all the wizarding papers of the world, not to mention on the collectable cards in the chocolate frogs. The last thing she needed right now is to be constantly put on the spot and interviewed all the time.

But she couldn't do anything about that, and it would definitely do no good dwelling on it so much and would only make things worse. So with that in mind Hermione locked all of her worries far away in her head, and with a smile on her face ran up to her grandmother and hugged her.

'Morning Sunshine, did you sleep well?'- asked her grandmother smiling, still looking at the frying pan where yet another pancake was being fried.

'You know I did nana, you herbal tea really does wonders! Are you sure you do not mix anything in? Because if you do, I would really love to know'- replied Hermione cheekily

This comment made her grandmother chuckle. 'Now, now Hermione, I may have been around in the 70s and the 80s, but you know I am all for healthy living. Plus, I would never reveal the secret of my "magical" tea.'-she said, miming the colons- 'After all, how else would i get to you come visit me?'

Hermione scrunched up her nose to that, she really did feel bad that she hasn't visited her grandmother in such a long time, but the mention of magical tea has made her wonder, for about 100th time this summer if maybe her grandmother was secretly a witch. It seemed very plausible... hmm... very plausible indeed.

'Earth to Hermione! Come dear, don't feel down. i don't blame you for neglecting an old woman like me for so long, I do understand that the last years of school are always very hard and challenging.'

Oh, nana, you have no idea. Thought Hermione involuntary. BUt instead she said-' I really am sorry, though, nana. It is no excuse at all! I promise you I will come more often now that school is almost over.'

'Speaking about school'- replied her grandmother, as if she suddenly remembered something.'Your letter came this morning. It was rather strange though, it came after all the other mail has already been delivered. The post man must have forgotten it, and came back to drop it off later. What a nice lad he is.'

'Yes, that was definitely very nice of him, nana.' Hermione said this with a slight twinkle in her eye, and a knowing smile on her face.

'Well, go on then, open it! What are you waiting for? I know you have been dying to recieve this letter for days now.'

Smiling gratefully at her grandmother Hermione quickly tore her letter open, and almost missed a small shiny object falling out of it.


	2. Chapter 2

**So, here is my second chapter, edited. I got a very helpful review, and decided to improve it strait away. So... here it is. The improved version of chapter 2. Please be nice, and please review. Constructive criticism is always very welcome! It seriously motivates me! And considering my inexperience, helps a lot too.**

**Anyway, i wont ramble on,**** so... yeah, enjoy :)**

**I don't own Harry Potter. If i did, I wouldn't have stopped at the 7th book.**

Draco Malfoy woke up with a start. He sat up abruptly and stared around, in total confusion. It took him a moment to adjust to the dimly lit room and another to figure out where he was. These nightmares left him very disoriented. Grunting in frustration, Draco realised that his sheets were once again soaked in sweat. He ran his hands through his already dishevelled hair and slowly got out of bed. Lazily making his way over to the massive window that took up almost the entire east wall of his room Draco threw the curtains open and was greeted by the early rays of sunshine. The same cheery rays of light found their was into his dark and gloomy room. As expected, the whole Malfoy household generally followed the slithering colour scheme, Draco's in particular. He used to adore his room, and think that it made him seem more mysterious and dangerous. The girls he often brought back here over the years definitely seemed to think so.

However, a lot has happened since those days. A light frown crossed Draco's face as he remembered his nightmare. Always the same one. Shaking the lingering feelings of dread and pain away, Draco ran his hands over his face, as if physically erasing any sign of emotion crossing his pale face. Putting your emotions on display was certainly not tolerated in this house. It might not have mattered anymore, as his father didn't really have a say in his life anymore, but old habits die hard. Draco was trained his whole life to keep his thoughts and emotions private, always staying in control, and at this point it just came naturally. Of course, he got plenty of practise over the past couple of years since the Dark Lord, no he must stop calling him that. Since Voldemort came back to power. With that snake like man living in his house Draco had to learn pretty quickly how to erase any traces of fear or disgust from his face. If he didn't he would be punished. Fear was not an acceptable emotion for Voldemort's followers. Thinking about all of that brought back the memories of the weeks and months following the end of the wizarding war.

If at all possible, those weeks more more emotionally challenging for Draco than anything before. He had to fight his way out of numerous accusations, deal with hateful and disgusted glances from anyone he came across. Listen to insults to him and his family, and finally defend himself in front of the wizengamont. He was lucky, as they didn't have any substantial evidence again him. With the help of one of the most brilliant, and as a result most expensive, lawyers in the entire wizarding community, Draco has managed to walk free of Azkaban, on the basis of being a minor when he was forced to joint the death eater ranks. His lawyer argued pretty convincingly that Draco was the real victim in the whole situation, so convincingly intact, that he almost believed it himself. Almost. He couldn't, no matter how hard he tried, to shake off the feeling of guilt and kept wondering if there was anything he could have done differently.

What made the whole humiliating ordeal worse was his punishment. Going back to Hogwarts with all his former classmates to complete his studies. For another year. A whole bloody year. Draco exhale quickly to get rid of his anger and anxiety. At least all of his slitherin peers were forced to come back as well. He would just spend his time in the common room reading or sorting out the family business. Yes, that was another problem he had to face this year. His family, more specifically, his family business. despite their massive fortunes and immense influences in the financial world, the family business was failing. And quite spectacularly at that. The fact that the Malfoys have lost their social standing after the war certainly helped, but something as trivial as that couldn't have done real damage. Oh, no. The fault was entirely his fathers. The old fool, for that was what Lucius had become in his son's eyes, has somehow managed to escape Azkaban. Played on the fact that he was mentally disturbed by the horrors of the war and managed to acquire evidence of being under the imperious curse and subject to multiple crusiatus curses. Considering everything, he has somehow managed to come out with a shrewd of dignity, and even convinced some of the more naive wizards and witches that he was intact a victim. In short, the whole thing was set up in such a way as to make people feel sorry for the Malfoy's and ultimately forgive them. It is not even worth mentioning his mother as she has assisted Potter with defeating Voldemort, and was not even an official death eater anyway, so the court did not give Narcissa a second glance.

However, despite coming out of the court room almost unscathed, in terms of punishment, the Malfoy name has been tarnished by the whole situation and many businessmen refused to deal with them. The only ones still considering working with the Malfoy's were the developing businesses that opened after the war, as they themselves were desperate for some sort of financial support. However, most were owned by muggleborns, and Lucius' views on them have not changed, so that was not an option either. Even their own buisness was not going very well.

Despite owning almost half the shares in the entire company, the Malfoy name was quickly losing its authority and power. No one was scared of Lucius as they once were. That infuriated his father and made him all the more rude and unreasonable. It seemed as though he was going mad and all the other shareholders were beginning to unite in order to get rid of the Malfoy's once and for all. Draco knew that if that were to happen, his family would not have a source of income anymore, and even their vast fortunes in the Gringotts bank would not be able to sustain his parents lavish lifestyle. So, despite not having any real interest in anything to do with hi family anymore, Draco decided to take matters into their own hands, in order to look after his parents. Well more like his mother, as she was the one he cared about. Unfortunately she still cared for his father, so he had to take care of him as well.

So, a couple of weeks ago Draco took over all of the family business into his own hands and has been working hard to restore his family's name and fortune. He actually turned out to have quite a talent for business and persuasion. He also did some semi secret charity work. Just secret enough for the general public to have no idea, but for the people that mattered to know. As another way to improve his reputation in the newly reformed business world be has started helping out the small businesses that were starting all over the country. In fact, he was supposed to have a meeting later this morning with one of his classmates. Draco was due to meet Neville Longbottom at the Leaky Couldron in a little less than an hour. They have had a number of business meetings like that over the summer, and Draco has actually taken a genuine interest in his former classmates business. Neville wanted to open a Herbology shop, where one could find absolutely everything from text books to the rarest plants. Being keen on potion making himself, Draco couldn't deny that it was a brilliant idea. For some reason none has come up with it yet, and so all the wizards still often had to venture out on their own to collect different ingredients needed for their potions. Neville's plans were going great and with some financial help from Draco his shop was due to open next week, just in time for the Hogwarts students to start their school shopping. Over the summer, the two boys have somehow become friends, although Draco was still reluctant to say that out loud, and Neville insisted on Draco being his co-owner as he has done so much to ensure Neville's success.

As Draco realised that he didn't have much time until he was meeting Nevill, he finally turned away from the window and went to have a nice hot shower. It always helped him relax after a tiring nightmare. To be honest, he hadn't had a good nights sleep in over a year. And this was definitely starting to show. He looked much paler that usually and the dark circles under his eyes never seemed to go away. He couldn't however appear weak in front of his business associates who were all much older than him and often still saw him as inferior in both intellect and authority. So he covered his tiredness with a glamour every morning. But that didn't fool those people that knew him well. Neville has expressed his concern more than once during the summer, but Draco has just brushed it off. His mother did not even dare inquire after his health, too afraid of Lucius' interference. She knew how much Draco's father annoyed and nagged him.

As Draco stepped out of the shower and started his daily make up application (as he sarcastically called it in his head), he was already planning out his schedule for the day. It was really quite busy and he felt exhausted just thinking about it.

7:00 Meeting with Neville

7:30 inspecting the shop, and paying off the workers

8:00 receiving shipments of merchandise and checking everything thoroughly (the most tedious and boring bit)

9:00 appointment at Gringotts with his family's financial advisor (he was actually thinking of firing him. Something about that slime bag unnerved him, Plus he was pretty sure he was stealing money from them anyway)

10:30 board meeting at the main office of Malfoy Inc. The other shareholders have been thinking about changing the name of the company to something that didn't broadcast their involvement with the Malfoys. Something about the business suffering due to the connection to his family. Draco could just see that dragging on for hours.

13:00 lunch with parents. This one was perhaps even more distressing than the board meeting. Draco absolutely despised having family meals as it meant he had to actually interact with his father. It took every ounce of his self control to not curse the man on the spot.

15:00 a meeting with a charity fund for casualties of war that he was planning on donating a large sum of money to. In secret of course.

16:30 interview at the daily prophet, for the business section. He had arranged that, with great difficulty in order to announce to the business world, and the wizarding community in general that the Malfoy's were still in the game, more specifically that he, Draco was still in the game and his father was no longer in charge. He was also going to subtly let it slip that he was doing secret charity work and helping developing business. He would also mention Neville's shop as an additional advertisement for its opening next week. Trying to control and manipulate the interviewer in his favour was going to be hard , but if it went according to his plans it would also be highly beneficial.

17:00 he was visiting his god father, Severus Snape, at the hospital, as he did every other day. He couldn't come everyday, because since Snape became hero, and all, quite a lot of people were paying him visits. People Draco didn't want to face until he had to.

18:00 Draco was looking at muggle flats, as he was planning to by one for when he leaves school. He definitely wasn't planning on staying with his parents. He had found a number of prospects that were all relatively close to the Ministry and his main office building. Not to mention it was close to the muggle business area, and Draco has been forming a very risky and unexpected plan for the last week or so.

Anyway, by the time Draco had his whole day planned out and mulled over, he had finished with his glamour and almost looked as good as new. Realising that he was running a little late, he hastily put his clothes on and rushed downstairs to the kitchen to grab a piece of toast (he hated talking business on an empty stomach). As Draco made his way into the living room where their floo was situated he noticed that his Hogwarts letter was on the table. After a moment of hesitation, he grabbed the enveloped and stuffed in into his back pocket, resolving to read it later.


	3. Chapter 3

Hermione bent down quickly to retrieve the little red pin that has fallen on the floor. At a closer inspection, she realised that, written across the pin, in golden letters were the two words she's been hoping to hear since the day she started at Hogwarts. Hermione couldn't believe it. Last year, she was so sure that this was another thing that she had missed due to the war and would never be able to get now. But it seemed that Headmistress McGonagall had a different idea entirely. Hermione Jean Granger, has just become the head girl at the Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Hermione's head was spinning with excitement. She was, in fact, so excited that she immediately forgot about any kind of anxiety or uncertainty that she had been feeling about coming back to Hogwarts a couple of minutes ago. All of that has been completely replaced with this new feeling of giddiness and anticipation. Now she definitely couldn't wait to get back to school. After all she would get her own room, and she would get to organise all the social events, and a permission to check out books from the restricted section, and, just, so much more! At this point Hermione was practically jumping up and down.

Almost immediately sensing Hermione's excitement, her grandmother asked her what could a school letter possibly contain to make, even someone as passionate about learning as Hermione, so happy. Instead of an answer, Hermione proudly presented her newest treasure (yes, it was her treasure, don't judge), as a five year old might present their favourite toy, because the amount of joy evident in her eyes could only rival that of a five year old.

'Oh, baby, that's wonderful! I am so happy for you! I know how badly you have always wanted to be a head girl. Do you know yet who the Head boy is?' asked, her grandmother.

'Oh, gosh, Head boy. Yes! Haha, i completely forgot about that.' said Hermione, with a slightly embarrassed smile. She couldn't believe she was excited enough about her new position, that she forgot she will be sharing her duties with another boy from her year.

She realised that there was no mention in her letter about who the Head Boy is, so at this point she could only guess. Harry? He would really be perfect, but she doubted that her best friend wanted to occupy any position of responsibility, at least for a little while. Ron? Hmm, admittedly he has become much more mature in the last year or so, but again, she doubted he would want all the responsibility of being head boy in his last year at Hogwarts. Then a thought occurred to Hermione. And this thought was entirely unwelcome, and even a little scary. She suddenly remembered that almost everyone in her year was coming back, especially the slitherins, as most of them were forced to do so as a form of punishment. This also made her realise, that following the war, in order to restore their world as much as possible, Professor McGonagall would most likely be very keen to promoting inter house unity and relations. And what better way to do it, then choose the two Heads from different houses. More than that, from two two rivalling houses. That meant, that the chances of the head boy being from Slitherin were indeed, extremely high.

With a little quiver in her voice, Hermione replied to her grandmother-'I really have no idea nana, i guess I will just have to wait and see when I get there.' And pray that it wasn't someone from Slitherin, she added in her head.

Brushing these thoughts aside Hermione began to concentrate on the fact that she was now more motivated than ever to get on with her preparations for school. She decided, that as soon as she got back home to London, she would go to Diagon Alley and get all of her supplies. That would also be a perfect opportunity to visit Neville's shop. She realised the official opening was in a week, but knowing Neville he would be there a week early sorting all his plants and rare herbs out. Hermione chuckled at the thought. Which meant that she could just pop round and pay him a visit. They might actually get more time that way to catch up and look around the shop as Neville wouldn't be busy with costumers.

So, as she got that sorted, Hermione decided to put her letter and her pin aside for now and get on with enjoying her last day with her nana.


End file.
